UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Teixeira preview and predictions – FanSided
Oct 3, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Alexander Gustafsson (blue gloves) prior to his World Light Heavyweight Championship against Daniel Cormier (not pictured) at UFC 192 at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
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Sunday, the UFC makes its return to Sweden, one of the strongest overseas markets. A card loaded with European talent should also provide insight into the future of several key divisions.
Main eventing the card will be Swedens biggest star, Alexander Gustafsson, against fellow former title challenger Glover Teixeira. Both men are in the title hunt with the title picture lacking contenders.
In addition to that, Volkan Oezdemir and Misha Cirkunov will also fight in the light heavyweight division in the co-main event, with the winner certainly in the title mix as well.
Names such as Ben Saunders and Jack Hermansson, among others, will also grace the card. With that, lets take a look at the card, break down each fight and make some predictions.
Main Card
Alexander Gustafsson vs. Glover Teixeira
The main event sees the hero of Sweden return, as Alexander Gustafsson looks to score a win on his home turf against Glover Teixeira. Both Gustafsson and Teixeira are strikers, which should make this a fireworks affair. Both men depend mostly on their boxing, as they throw a large majority of their strikes with their hands. Both have knockout power too, which go nicely with the great movement and technique. On the ground, Teixeira has the advantage, though I dont think he possesses the wrestling to get Gustafsson to the mat. That will leave Teixeira upright in a dog fight. There, Gustafsson will win a close, entertaining affair to get his name back in title contention.
Misha Cirkunov vs. Volkan Oezdemir
The co-main event sees two of the best up-and-coming light heavyweights in the company square off, as Swiss fighter Volkan Oezdemir welcomes Latvian-Canadian Misha Cirkunov to the continent of Europe. Cirkunov is a well-rounded, physical light heavyweight who has shown a masterful submission game since touching down in the UFC. All four of his wins come via finish, scoring submissions over Nikita Krylov, Ion Cutelaba and Alex Nicholson, as well as a TKO over Daniel Jolly. Hes truly on his way to star status, but in his way here is Oezdemir, who opened his UFC tenure with a massive upset of Ovince Saint Preux. Oezdemir is a striker, so his only way of victory is to keep this upright. If Cirkunov gets him down, he will be in a world of trouble. Unfortunately for him, that happens here, as Cirkunov wins another bout by submission to get into title contention.
Peter Sobotta vs. Ben Saunders
An international welterweight bout is afoot, as Germanys Peter Sobotta looks to continue his solid UFC run against the always entertaining Ben Saunders. Saunders and Sobotta are very opposite fighters. Saunders is a tall, lanky striker who can grapple, but prefers to destroy people on the feet and from his very dangerous clinch. Sobotta is a grappler that usually just uses his striking to set up mat work, which will lead him to submission victories. Now in his second UFC stint, Sobotta is 3-1 in this run, which hsa seen him score wins over Nicolas Dalby, Steve Kennedy and Pawel Pawlak. Saunders has faced grapplers before with better takedowns and succeeded, so its tough to envision a Sobotta victory here. Saunders succeeds.
Omari Akhmedov vs. Abdul Razak al-Hassan
We stick in the welterweight division for the next offering, as Russias Omari Akhmedov squares off with Ghana-American Abdul Razak al-Hassan. Hassan is a judo practitioner that has shown a penchant for the striking game. Instead of using said judo, al-Hassan prefers to play the knockout game, landing huge head strikes from the get-go. He did so in his UFC debut, needing less than a minute to dispose of Charlie Ward. He faces his biggest test to date in Akhmedov, who is similarly a heavy-handed striker, but does use his ground game more than al-Hassan. Akmedov is rugged and smart, so he could turn this into a meat grinder, where he rides out al-Hassan from the top. That happens, as the crowd may be disheartened, but Akhmedov avoids the highlight reel of al-Hassan to score the win.
Oliver Enkamp vs. Nordine Taleb
On late notice in the welterweight division, Swedens Oliver Enkamp has signed with the UFC to fill in for Emil Meek, taking on the rising Nordine Taleb. Enkamp is undefeated at 7-0, finishing five of those fights in the process. He is known for his grappling, as he looks for takedowns and grabs for the neck when left open. He takes on Taleb, who is a grinder in his own right, though he is the better striker. If he can avoid a grappling match with Enkamp, he can easily pick him apart. Enkamp is a solid prospect, but hes yet to take on a guy the caliber of Taleb. The French-Canadian scores the victory in this one.
Jack Hermansson vs. Alex Nicholson
Kicking off the main card will be a middleweight scrap, as Swedens Jack Hermansson looks for a win in front of his home crowd against Alex Nicholson. Hermansson is a well-rounded fighter, though hes known better for his striking and ability to knock guys out. The former Cage Warriors Champion is 1-1 under the UFC banner, with an entertaining win over Scott Askham in his debut before he fell via submission to Cezar Ferreira. As for Nicholson, the former heavyweight and light heavyweight has migrated down to 185, and in that time, seen mixed results. He started off well by knocking out Devin Clark, but followed it up by falling via decision to Sam Alvey. This should be a close, back-and-forth fight, but in the end, I will give the edge to Hermansson, who scores the win on home soil.
Preliminary Card
Pedro Munhoz vs. Damian Stasiak
The bantamweights will headline the preliminary portion of this card, as Polands Damian Stasiak looks to score the biggest win of his career against Brazils Pedro Munhoz. Munhoz is a top-notch grappler and submission artist whose game plan is simple: ground the opponent. Munhoz is 4-2 under the UFC umbrella, with his only losses coming to top UFC bantamweights. Hes scored finishes in the company over Justin Scoggins, Russell Doane and Jerrod Sanders, all of which came by impressive submission. As for Stasiak, he started off his UFC run slow with an unimpressive loss to Yaotzin Meza, but righted the ship in his last two fights by beating Filip Pejic and Davey Grant, both of which came by submission. Like Munhoz, he prefers the ground game, though I doubt hes anywhere near the level of his adversary. The Brazilian gets the fight down and dominates, scoring another impressive submission win.
Trevor Smith vs. Chris Camozzi
Americans are set to fight on Swedish soil, Chris Camozzi fights Trevor Smith, the latter of whom fills in for the injured Swede Magnus Cedenblad. Camozzi is notoriously known as one of the most rigid fighters in the UFC middleweight division from a toughness standpoint. He is a striker who uses classical muay Thai techniques in his fights, and excels when battering people in the clinch. He needs to avoid the ground with Smith, who is a wrestler that transitions that skill to his jiu-jitsu game smoothly. With both men coming off losses, there will be a sense of urgency in this fight. Camozzi will gauge the distance well on Smith and try to pick him apart from the outside, as to stay away from the shooting distance of Smith. It should earn him a hard-fought decision win.
Reza Madadi vs. Joaquim Silva
On very late notice, Reza Madadi steps in for Mairbek Taisumov to fight Joaquim Silva in the lightweight division. Madadis UFC career has been an interesting ride thus far. In the middle of his tenure, he went to prison, putting his career in doubt. However, since his release, hes struggled to gain the momentum he had before his incarceration. Hes sandwiched a win over Yan Cabral with losses over top fighters Norman Parke and Joe Duffy. He will take his hard-nosed grinding style in the cage opposite Silva, a BJJ fighter who has shown some knockout power in his hands (see the Andrew Holbrook fight). The undefeated Brazilian would be wise to get Madadi to the ground, as thats the best chance for him to beat Madadi here. Despite the late notice, Mad Dog is a tough out for anybody in the division and he thrives in front of a friendly home audience.
Nico Musoke vs. Bojan Velickovic
Kicking off the televised portion of the prelims are the welterweights, as Swedens own Nico Musoke looks to score a win in his comeback fight against Serbian Bojan Velickovic. Musoke has been out of the cage since January of 2015, as injuries have halted his comeback to the cage. Previous to that, he had been a solid welterweight participant, taking on some tough competition to mixed results. He takes on Velickovic, who has been very active in the time Musoke has been out of competition. In fact, Velickovic is 5-1-1 in the time Musoke has been away from the cage. That is a major factor here, in my opinion. Velickovic scores a win over a rusty Musoke, getting the Serb back into the win column for the first time since his UFC debut.
Darren Till vs. Jessin Ayari
Welterweights are due to the cage next, as Englands Darren Till is set to fight Germanys Jessin Ayari. Till is an exciting, dangerous prospect in the welterweight division who boasts an undefeated record. He is destructive on the feet and on the mat, which is an ode to his time working with Astra Fight Team in Brazil. Hes coming off a wildly entertaining draw with Nicolas Dalby, so clearly hes lusting for a victory here. Ayari is a submission specialist who would like to keep Till away from the power striking and get him on his back. His UFC debut was a tough-fought split decision victory over Jim Wallhead, a countryman of Till. This should be a workmanlike fight, but when it comes to Till, hes clearly a head above Ayari, which is why he scores a late finish here.
Marcin Held vs. Damir Hadzovic
The lightweights will square off next, as Bosnian-Dane Damir Hadzovic looks to score a victory over Polands Marcin Held. Hadzovic is a striker known for his reckless, violent style on the feet. He is a head hunter, and will compromise his own defense to score a power shot. His time in the UFC has been short thus far, only having one fight with the company, a knockout loss to Mairbek Taisumov. As for Held, hes a top talent with the company, but is still looking for his first win. His first two UFC bouts he was thrown into the deep end, taking decision losses to Diego Sanchez and Joe Lauzon. That said, the loss to Lauzon was a fight many people thought Held won. He can strike in his own right, but his outright advantage would be on the mat, where he is very slick with his submission ability. That happens here, as Held works his wizardry on the ground, tapping out Hadzovic with an impressive finish.
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UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Teixeira preview and predictions - FanSided